


Auld Lang Syne

by speedgriffon



Series: Fallout 4: Madelyn Hardy Fics [2]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Early Relationship, F/M, Fluff, New Year's Eve, kind of first kiss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-31
Updated: 2015-12-31
Packaged: 2018-05-10 17:12:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5594260
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/speedgriffon/pseuds/speedgriffon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Madelyn and Danse celebrate the New Year.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Auld Lang Syne

Madelyn watched from the ramparts of the Castle as her companions celebrated the festivities in the courtyard below, cheerful music playing and creating an air of joy and laughter. She had been looking forward to the gathering to celebrate the New Year ever since she found a box of old holiday records in an abandoned radio tower. But when the evening finally came, there was a sense of loneliness she couldn’t shake.

Part of her lamented that it was the first New Year spent without her family, but most of her grieving had been done on Christmas. She was working hard on moving past those emotions; wanting to find whatever happiness she could in this new world. Madelyn was fairly successful with the friends she found and was glad that they all agreed to this celebration. All except _one_.

Danse had been there when she discovered the records and when she suggested the idea of celebrating the holiday. He had responded with his usual gruffness, thinking she was wasting time on a frivolous thing when there were more important things for her to worry about. It was easy for Madelyn to smooth-talk him into changing his mind—that a little R&R was needed—and invited him to the party. She thought it was a sure thing that she’d see him amongst the rest of her companions. After all, he had been in Sanctuary when they celebrated Christmas. The two of them had even danced and the memory brought a smile to Madelyn’s face. But tonight, Danse was nowhere to be found and she was struggling with feeling disappointed. Madelyn had wanted to dance with him again and when midnight came…perhaps something more.

It was foolish of her to get her hopes up and the more she thought about it the more she felt like a teenager with a hopeless crush she’d have to fight to get over. She tried to focus on something else and yet her thoughts kept circling back to Danse and the made up reasons for why he hadn’t shown up. It wasn’t going to be easy for her to get him out of her mind—not when they had been travelling together consistently for so long now. Despite the flirting and the few teasing kisses she had given him, Madelyn had never meant for any sort of feelings to manifest. She was afraid of the ache in her heart and debated, wondering if it was fair of her to move on so quickly.

Madelyn shook her head, closing her eyes to hold back the sting of tears. She supposed her feelings didn’t matter when the possibility of _anything_ happening was so low. Especially after tonight. A breeze sent a shiver down her spine and Madelyn lifted her hands to rub at her arms, reprimanding herself for leaving her coat downstairs. She could almost hear Danse in her head, chastising her for never being properly dressed.

“You must be freezing.”

Madelyn turned around in surprise at the sound of a familiar voice and thought she was hallucinating when she saw who had joined her on the ramparts. She almost didn’t recognize Danse at first, not without his power armor. He was dressed in the same old pre-war suit he had worn at Christmas, his coat hooked over his arm. Madelyn hated how speechless she was—she didn’t expect to see him at all that evening. When she didn’t say anything in response, Danse hesitantly stepped closer. He looked anxious, at least more so than usual.

“You’re alone.” He said and Madelyn felt a familiar flutter in her heart when his eyes scanned over her face, dipping for a moment to look at her dress. “What are you doing up here?”

“I could ask you the same question.” Madelyn needed to break the awkward tension lingering between them. “You’re late.”

Danse smirked. “I didn’t want to disappoint you.”

“Smart thinking.” Madelyn teased. Silence fell between them, but when she shivered at the cold night air, Danse moved closer to her, unfolding his jacket and draping it around her shoulders. She gripped the inside collar tighter to her body and smiled at him. “Thank you.”

His hands lingered near hers, and his eyes looked over her appearance once more before he tore his hands away, one snapping up to rub the back of his neck. The nervous gesture calmed Madelyn—at least he was an anxious as she was. She only wished she knew _why_.

Danse offered a small grin when she raised a curious eyebrow at his actions. “You look…really nice, Kni—” He frowned at his near slip-up. “Madelyn— _Mads_.”

She laughed, her heart warming over at his fumble. Danse was obviously embarrassed but the soft blush on his cheeks was endearing. Madelyn had told him long ago that she preferred her _name_ to her various titles and while the habit was hard to break, he was working on it. He had even given her a nickname after ‘Mad Woman’ became too much of a mouthful. She liked the way it sounded, especially when _he_ was the one saying it.

“You know, most men tell women they look _beautiful_.” Madelyn only meant to tease him but the way his expression softened had her biting back her words.

“Well then…” Danse moved closer to her and Madelyn fought the feeling to move away. She liked being close to him, no matter the consequences. “You look _beautiful_.”

Madelyn was more than speechless in that moment—she was _breathless_. The way he had said it in an amorous tone…she had never heard him speak like that before. Danse didn’t break eye contact and his expression didn’t falter, making it _that much_ more difficult for Madelyn to control the racing of her heart. She couldn’t think of anything to say but the crowd below saved her from a fumbling response.

Danse stood next to her as they looked down at the group, their voices counting down from ten in unison. She joined them, silently counting down the moments before the New Year was finally there. Now that Danse was there, standing next to her…the thoughts from earlier came back in full force. What would happen at midnight? Madelyn couldn’t contain her anxiety, feeling as though she was about to burst.

_Three…two…ONE!_

She flinched, almost losing her balance in surprise as the crowd cheered, welcoming in the New Year while simultaneously lighting off fireworks that Deacon had found. Danse’s hand met her elbow to steady her, but his touch only made her heart beat faster. Seconds passed and when nothing happened she began to calm down, albeit with a new flicker of disappointment. Why did she think that he would kiss her?

“What is this song?” Danse suddenly asked, pulling Madelyn from her thoughts. She glanced sideways at him, unable to fully meet his gaze. He gestured towards the radio tower.

“It’s tradition.” Madelyn simply explained, tightening his jacket around her body. “In the Old World it played at midnight to bring in the New Year— _Auld Lang Syne_.”

“What does it mean?” Danse asked. Madelyn finally turned her head to look at him.

“There isn’t a _real_ translation but…” She flashed a small smile. “I’ve always thought of it as ‘for the sake of old times’—embracing the past but also moving on into a new future.”

They stood next to each other in a more comfortable silence as the rest of the song played, Madelyn closing her eyes as she thought about what she had just said and what it meant to her. Danse’s hand slipped down her arm and slowly, softly, his fingers hooked into hers. She looked down at their linked hands, swallowing down her nervousness. What was he doing?

“There are other traditions, right?”

“What do you mean?” Madelyn lifted her gaze to his and couldn’t hold back the gasp that fell from her lips at his closeness.

Danse raised his other hand to her cheek, fingers brushing back the curls of her hair. His eyes flicked down to her lips and Madelyn tilted her chin up as he slowly pulled her closer. He kissed her, lips warm and soft against her own. Even though they had kissed before _this_ felt different. It was chaste, and yet full of emotion. She wanted more, she wanted all that Danse had to give to her—she wanted to hear him tell her that he felt the same as she did. Madelyn leaned into him, never wanting it to end.

Danse smiled against her lips as he pulled away. “Happy New Year, Madelyn.”

Madelyn could only respond in kind, a grin spreading across her face. “Happy New Year, Danse.”


End file.
